The Protector of Karasumori
by mangaanime15
Summary: Thing is not easy for young Yoshimori. His mother is dead. His Grandpa is too sick. His elder brother disappears to join some organization. His little brother and father don't look good either. How will he cope with these problems as well as Karasumori?
1. Chapter 1: The Unforgettable Day

Disclaimer: I do not own Kekkaishi.

A/N.: It's been awhile since I wrote my first fanfiction. This is my second fanfiction. I always want to write a fanfiction on Kekkaishi. Anyway tell me what you think after reading it.

Chapter 1: The Unforgettable Day

"Why should I do it? It's not my job. It's **his** job. I'm not this family's legitimate successor," Masamori shouted angrily.

His shout echoed through the house. A nine years old, little child who was listening secretly the conversation shrunk at his aniki's shout. Yoshimori Sumimura knew his aniki was mad at him. He wished he could do something about it. Lately, his aniki got into a lot of fights with his Grandpa and parents. And, it was always about the same issue.

His inability to perform his family's job.

Sumimura family came from a long line descendant of kekkaishi. A kekkaishi is an ability user that can create kekkai. They use kekkai to trap and destroy the ayakashi that harm people. It was a dangerous job. Sumimura family had been given a duty to guard a piece of land named Karasumori from any trespassers. This land is no ordinary land. It gave out great power. If this power was absorbed by ayakashi, no matter how weak and small they were, they can become extremely dangerous. For 400 years, generations by generations, the Sumimuras had dutifully guard this land.

Young Yoshimori looked at his right hand. There was a square mark on it. It was a symbol that Yoshimori is the legitimate successor of Sumimura family. As the legitimate successor, it is his duty to inherit his family's job. Unfortunately, he had a weak body. As such, he is susceptible to diseases. As a result, he was often bedridden. His aniki often filled in his place much to Masamori's annoyance. Yoshimori knew Masamori was very mad at him because he had to do Yoshimori's work. Yoshimori tried to make up by being nice to him and training extra hard. However, it was not enough. There seemed to be a huge gap between them.

"Masamori, Yoshimori is still incapable of shouldering this job. Besides, you should know that your brother has a weak body. He can't strain his body too much," Sumiko Sumimura explained, trying to keep her remaining patient. She didn't like her eldest son's rude behavior. It was unacceptable.

"Then, why doesn't Grandpa do it?" Masamori yelled. This 16 years old teen refused to give in to his mother without a fight.

Sumiko sighed, "Masamori, your Grandpa is too old for this. You can't expect him to fight ayakashi like that."

"It's okay, Sumiko. I can still handle it," Shigemori said confidently. Unfortunately, it was not convincing when he coughed badly. The old man really was not in good shape despite his attempt to act like that.

Sumiko soothed Shigemori's back, "Father, you are not well enough. Don't force yourself too much." Sumiko then glanced at Masamori, "Look, Masamori, it's not very hard. It's just until Yoshimori is good and healthy enough to take his responsibility."

"It's still doesn't explain why I should do it. Besides, no one knows when he will be ready. He's too weak. I bet he'll die the minute he steps into Karasumori," Masamori sneered.

"Masamori, that's not the way to talk about him. He's your little brother," Sumiko said sternly. Her patience was running out.

"Then, why don't you just do it by yourself since you're so determine about this whole Karasumori business," Masamori argued. "Besides, it's not like it worth my time after all. That Yukimura girl doesn't put up a challenge to me."

Besides Sumimura family, Yukimura family was also the guardian of Karasumori. Initially, they feuded over who is the legitimate successor of their founder, Tokimori Hazama's kekkai style. However, as time passed, they did not feud over this matter any more. Of course they didn't get along very well but they developed some sort of friendly rivalry between themselves. It was more to see who was the better kekkaishi and who was the better guardian of Karasumori.

"I can't do everything by myself. Lately, there are too many ayakashi. We need all the help we have. Besides, this is not some sort of sport. We defend Karasumori so no innocent people get hurt," Sumiko reprimanded.

"Huh, then I'm better off joining that organization if we are going to protect people," Masamori retorted back.

Recently, someone from an organization known as Shadow Organization had been trying to recruit Masamori as their member. It was a mysterious organization full of many kinds of ability users. Masamori wanted to join them, saying that his talent will be recognized and not wasted for petty thing like Karasumori. Unfortunately, Sumiko and Shigemori didn't approve his decision which leaded to many arguments. And these arguments always ended in a bad way.

"Masamori, how many times I need to say? I don't want you to have anything to do with that organization. We don't know much about them," Sumiko snapped. Her patience had completely gone.

"Well, I don't care!" Masamori yelled and stormed away from the room only to bump with Yoshimori. Yoshimori fell on the floor with a thud. Before he could apologize, Masamori yelled, "What are you doing there? Get out of my way!"

Masamori then pushed away Yoshimori, not ignoring about his little brother at all. He didn't even bother to help Yoshimori at all. Sumiko who saw the whole incident was not very pleased. She was about to call Masamori back and scold him when she heard cough coming from her father.

"Father, are you okay? Should we go to hospital?" Sumiko asked with concern.

Lately, Shigemori's health was not good. He kept coughing and having muscle ache. It didn't help at all when he stubbornly refused to go to hospital.

"I'm okay. I just need to drink some water," Shigemori answered.

Shuji who had kept quiet the whole incident offered a glass of water to Shigemori which Shigemori accepted gratefully. Although he didn't like his wife's job as the guardian of Karasumori, he knew how important this task. He could tell that Sumiko really took her responsibility to her heart. Unfortunately, his eldest son wasn't like that. The adults soon started their discussion. Yoshimori knew better not to eavesdropping them. So, he went outside to get fresh air which was a big mistake.

"Hey, brat. What are you doing there?" Sitting on a tree in Yoshimori's neighbor backyard, a young eleven years old girl with ponytail hair yelled at Yoshimori.

Yoshimori sighed. His luck was bad. He thought he could get away from everything for a moment. In his mind, Yoshimori asked himself why this girl always showed up at a bad time. Can't she read the atmosphere? Can he ever escape from her? Oh, right. He can't. She is his neighbor and they went to the same school. So, practically, he can't escape from her.

"What do you want, Tokine?" Yoshimori asked in bored tone.

Tokine Yukimura, the legitimate successor of Yukimura family, didn't like Yoshimori's tone. Well, it was not like Yoshimori hated her and wanted to be mean to her. It was just that she was annoying. She always teased and made fun of him. And her tendency to compete with him in eliminating ayakashi didn't help to improve her image in Yoshimori's eyes. He meant, like his mother said, this was not some sort of sport. One mistake can cost you your own life or other people's life. Yoshimori shuddered at this thought. It was way better for them to cooperate together.

But, no.

She wanted to compete with him even though it was obvious she can't beat the ayakashi by herself and needed other people's help. Well, if that was not enough. She just had to sour his mood by bragging around whenever she destroyed an ayakashi, lamenting how weak he was and how useless he was. He didn't need anyone to constantly remind him about that. His elder brother had done the job and Yoshimori had to admit that Masamori did a good job on that.

"I was just asking. Don't be mad just because you're way behind than me," Tokine taunted, sticking her tongue out.

Here it goes again. Yoshimori sighed. Why it always had to be like this? Why can't they have some civil, normal conversation that didn't involve Karasumori or their family's job at all? Why did Tokine have to bring up this matter?

"Hey, hey, you know what," Tokine spoke eagerly, "Yesterday, me and my father destroyed a very big ayakashi." Tokine spread out her hands to indicate how big the ayakashi was. "We destroyed it easily. You should be there and see it."

The last part of Tokine's words really hurt Yoshimori. Of course he would be at Karasumori, fighting the ayakashi if only he was healthy enough. However, Tokine didn't notice this as Yoshimori put his indifferent mask. She kept talking and talking how she and her father were a great combination, that she was a great help to her father. Somewhere back at Yoshimori's mind, he wanted to help his mother too. He had seen many times how exhausted her mother each time she came home from Karasumori. However, no matter how exhausted she was, she always smiled.

Many times he had offered to help her out. But, she refused him gently, saying it was not the right time for him to fight ayakashi and he should focus more on getting healthy. Yoshimori could still remember how he sneaked out from the house to help her mother. He was seven years old at that time. It was his first time. He did actually manage to destroy an ayakashi. But, he got wounded in the process. His mother was so angry when she found out about it. That really taught Yoshimori not to sneak into Karasumori alone behind his mother's back. Tokine didn't seem wanted to stop talking and Yoshimori was getting bored.

"Hey, where are you going?" Tokine shouted as Yoshimori retreated back to his house.

Yoshimori didn't say anything. He just ignored Tokine much to her annoyance. It was disrespectful. Yoshimori can't do this to her. She was the legitimate successor of Yukimura family. Nobody can dismiss her like that. However, before she could do anything, Yoshimori has already disappeared from her sight. Tokine bit her lips. That brat really needed to be taught a lesson. A very hard, tough lesson. Next time, she'll definitely show who is better between the two of them.

Yoshimori sighed in relief. He finally got away from Tokine. However, it didn't last long when he saw Masamori was talking secretly in phone. It was suspicious. From Masamori's serious look, Yoshimori could tell it was a very important. In fact, it was probably very important until Masamori didn't realize that Yoshimori was watching him. Yoshimori strained his ears to catch what Masamori was talking. But, it was useless since Masamori was whispering. He just heard Masamori whispering about agreeing on something. Once finished, Masamori put down the phone. Only then, he realized that Yoshimori was watching him.

"What are you doing here?" Masamori asked angrily.

"Nothing. Just passing by. Who are you talking to?" Yoshimori asked back politely.

"None of your business," Masamori brushed Yoshimori off, storming away to his room.

Yoshimori just stood there for a moment. He was confused. What did he do? Did he do anything wrong? He just asked a question, politely if he must add. He was so lost in his thought that he didn't realize someone was approaching him from behind. He only realized when a tiny hand tugged his sleeve. It was his four years old little brother, Toshimori Sumimura. He stared at Yoshimori with bright eyes and stretched up his hand. Yoshimori picked up his little brother with a smile. On Toshimori's hands, there was a piece of card and a lot of colour pencils.

Waving the items in front of Yoshimori, Toshimori said in excitement, "Yoshi-nii, look, look, look what I've found. Do you thing we can make a beautiful card?"

"Of course we can. It's for Mother after all. Well then, let's finish it before tomorrow," Yoshimori put down Toshimori and led him to study room.

"Hey, hey, Yoshi-nii, do you think Mother will be really happy?" It was faint but Yoshimori could sense Toshimori's worry laced in his energetic voice.

Well, it can't be helped especially after what Masamori said to him. Yoshimori can remember it clearly. It all began Tokine talked about the gift she will give to her mother on Mother Day. So, Yoshimori and Toshimori decided to make and give a gift for Sumiko too. They asked Masamori to join them in their plan but Masamori just brushed them off, saying it was wasting time and their mother really won't need and appreciate it. This hurt Toshimori. Yoshimori was used to be ignored by Masamori. But, he couldn't accept how Masamori treated Toshimori. It was not right. They are his family. Family ought to stay together, right?

"Of course she'll be happy. We put all our heart in this, right?" Yoshimori assured Toshimori.

"Right," Toshimori beamed.

And that was what they did for the rest of the evening. They coloured and coloured. They intended to give the card tomorrow since tomorrow is Mother Day. Yoshimori couldn't wait for tomorrow. However, for some reason, Yoshimori had a bad feeling about tonight. He can't put his fingers on it. Maybe, he felt it because of all unlucky things that happened today. First, his big brother has a huge fight with his mother. Then, Tokine made fun of him. If that not worse, his own big brother sneered at him for something he didn't know. This bad feeling intensified as he watched his mother got ready at the doorway.

Something was not right. Something bad is going to happen. Something very, very, very bad.

Yoshimori could feel it to his bone. He wanted to stop her mother badly but didn't know how. What should he say? He tried to push away this feeling with no success. So, he did the only thing in his mind at that time. He tugged her sleeves from behind which surprised Sumiko.

"Don't go," Yoshimori mumbled.

Sumiko studied her son carefully and could sense worry in her son. She smiled, "Don't worry. I'll come back safely."

Somehow, Yoshimori was not convinced at all. It was weird. His mother had gone to Karasumori countless of time. This was not her first time. And, she always come back home **safely** and **alive** even thought she sometime suffered a few big wounds. But, he had this strange feeling as if he will never see her again. This terrified Yoshimori greatly.

"Can I come with you? I won't cause trouble for you," Yoshimori asked.

Sumiko was taken aback by the question. She answered gently, "No, Yoshimori. You're not healthy enough." Yoshimori looked disappointed and upset when he heard this. Not wanting to upset her son, she said, "Hey, I know what you can do for me?" This caught Yoshimori's attention. His face light up. Sumiko continued, "Look after the family when I'm gone."

Yoshimori pouted, "How that is considered as helping you?"

Sumiko chuckled, "It is helping me. I can't look after all of you and be at Karasumori at the same time."

"But, you can just use shikigami," Yoshimori argued.

"Yes but it will use a lot of my energy. I'll collapse if I use it excessively," Sumiko explained.

"Okay. I'll look after our family when you're gone" Yoshimori reluctantly promised. He couldn't found a way to counter argue his mother. Reluctantly, he let go his mother's sleeves. As his mother's back faded from his view, Yoshimori said loudly, "Come back safely, okay?"

Sumiko just waved her hand to indicate she heard Yoshimori. With that, she set off to Karasumori. Oh, how Yoshimori wished he never let his mother go. Imagine how shocked and terrified he was when he saw his mother, supported by shikigami, …..

…..was fatally wounded and drenched in her blood.

"Mother!" Yoshimori's shout echoed throughout his home, alerting his Grandpa and Father.

Minute later, footsteps running toward the doorway in a hurry can be heard. Shigemori and Shuuji were shocked with what had happened. She was breathing heavily. Sumiko's wounds were too deep that she may not survive from these wounds. However, they refused to give up.

"Shuuji, go and get the first aid kits. We'll need some bandages too," Shigemori ordered as he went outside to confront the owner of the shikigami.

"Yes, Father," Shigemori nodded without arguing.

Yoshimori's mind couldn't register what happened next. His mind was blank. He just stood there like an idiot. He knew he should do something but he couldn't think anything about it. He woke up from his stupor when a pair of hands grabbed his shoulder. It was Sumiko. Her eyes were watery. However, she tried as best as she can to smile.

"Yoshimori, I'm sorry. I made everything hard for you," Sumiko said weakly. Then, with energy she had, she whispered on Yoshimori's ear, "Whatever you do, don't let your guard down around them."

With that, Sumiko fall on the floor, lifeless. It took a moment for Yoshimori to understand what had happened. Desperately, he shook his mother, calling her name aloud. However, no matter what he did, she didn't move at all. Yoshimori was starting to cry. He cried more when his Grandpa checked his mother and shook his head. It was now very clear.

His mother was dead.


	2. Chapter 2: The Crumbling Family

Disclaimer: I do not own Kekkaishi.

A/N: Sorry for the late update. Any way, thank for the review. Yeah, I am kind of flipping Yoshimori and Tokine's situation. But, don't worry. Yoshimori is still the main character even though I can't guarantee I will pair him with Tokine. Oh, before I forget. Thank for those who add this story to their Story Alert and Story Favourite. Your supports are highly appreciated. Any way, on to the story. 

Chapter 2: The Crumbling Family

It's been a week since Sumiko's death. Things were not the same as before. Before, the house was filled with laugh and happiness. Now, sadness and despair loomed the house. It didn't cease at all even though many people, including Yukimura family, came to pay their last respect for Sumiko at her funeral, offering help and support to Sumimura family. In fact, it just added more despair and sadness. Of course, the Sumimuras politely thanked and turned down the offers, saying they will ask when they needed help.

Many things had changed for the past week. Their home was in disarray. There are many unwashed dishes in the sink. Dirty clothes piled up as high as a huge mountain. Their backyard was not properly kept tidy as the dead leaves scattered around. In short, their house was in a great mess. There was no one to look after the house. Shigemori was not healthy enough. Shuji and Toshimori were still affected by Sumiko's death while Masamori was too busy with his stuff. Luckily, Tokine's mother was kindly enough to cook lunch and dinner for them. Or else, they will starve. Yoshimori was very worried about his family members.

Toshimori didn't smile and laugh at all like he used to be. He kept crying and crying silently, asking to see his mother again. It didn't do any good at all when he kept holding and staring the card they made for their mother. Grandpa with heavy heart explained patiently the reason why their mother can't come back anymore. Of course, being a small child of four years old, Toshimori couldn't understand the explanation. He refused to eat and drink until he saw his mother. He only ate and drank after being coaxed by Yoshimori and Grandpa.

His father was not in good condition too, at least, in emotional way. He's been brooding since their mother's death. He didn't speak to anyone at all except when people asked or talked to him first. Even so, he barely said anything. He just gave a very short reply and brushed them off. Sometimes, his father will suddenly snap at them for no reason. This made Yoshimori worried. No matter what happened, his father always managed to maintain his composure. Yoshimori also noticed that his father didn't care about his surrounding at all. It was as if, he was in his own world.

Deep in Yoshimori's heart, he was very worried about his Grandpa. Shigemori's health was deteriorating. He coughed a lot. Sometimes, he had difficulty in breathing. Yoshimori could remember clearly how his Grandpa suddenly collapsed at the funeral. The doctor said it was probably because Grandpa was very stressed and sad over their mother's death. He told Grandpa to rest a lot. The Yukimura family volunteered to help them, watching over Karasumori which Grandpa reluctantly accepted. However, deep down inYoshimori's heart, he was very grateful with Yukimura's help. His Grandpa can't do kekkaishi work with his current health.

Yoshimori sighed when he thought about his elder brother, Masamori. Yoshimori didn't know what to do with Masamori. He thought at time like this, Masamori will act more mature and do what elder brother supposed to do. For example, comforting them, telling them everything will be okay or at least, helping Grandpa with Karasumori work. He should act as their leader at the time like this. But then again, Yoshimori probably was overdramatic. Masamori is not their family's legitimate successor but Yoshimori is. The one should shoulder these responsibilities is Yoshimori.

Yoshimori sighed again, looking outside his window. For the past week, Yoshimori didn't go to school at all. His teachers understood his situation and allowed him to take a break from school. Usually, a break from school made Yoshimori happy. He didn't have to listen to his teacher's lecture. He didn't have to worry about schoolwork too. He can play as much as he can with Toshimori. However, this time, it didn't make Yoshimori happy at all. It was probably because Yoshimori knew her mother wouldn't come back no matter what he did. He won't see his mother again…

….for the rest of his life.

This realization hurt him badly. His mother will not be there when he got sicked. His mother will not comfort him when he had a nightmare. His mother will never greet him when he got home after school. His mother will never tell bedtime story. His mother will never cook for him at all. This made Yoshimori sadder. It made Yoshimori wondered if this is how it felt to lose precious people….

…..forever.

Was it always painful like this? Will this pain disappear? Can time really heal this pain? Can their family be the same as before? Yoshimori thought harder and yet he couldn't find any answer. His train of thought was stopped when he heard an angry shout.

"I don't care. Whether you approve it or not, I'm still going," Masamori shouted angrily.

Apparently, his shout didn't only catch Yoshimori's attention alone but Toshimori and Shuji's too. They quickly went to study room to find the source of shout, silently opening the sliding door to see Masamori was standing, glaring intensely at Shigemori. Shigemori didn't back down at all. He glared at Masamori with the same intensity. He'll be damned if he let this arrogant, young man in front of him thought him as someone that can be pushed around. Yoshimori as well as Shuji and Toshimori knew better not to interfere with this argument. Therefore, they didn't enter the room. Instead, they just stood in front of the room, watching as the argument become heater and heater.

"For the last time, Masamori, I forbid you from joining them. They are not what they are used to be," Shigemori said patiently.

"This is the best opportunity for me to expand my talent. To be acknowledged properly," Masamori argued.

"Look, I know you have a lot of talent in kekkai technique. But, there's no reason for you to join them. You can still expand your talent here. I can teach you," Shigemori made his counterargument.

"But, there are no challenges here. Besides, I already master kekkai technique. The one that you need to teach is Yoshimori," Masamori sneered.

Yoshimori flinched at Masamori's last words. He felt those words were directed to him rather than to his Grandpa. Toshimori was starting to cry. He didn't like all this shouting. In fact, he didn't really understand why his Grandpa and Masamori were shouting at each other in the first place. Shuji motioned his two sons to come closer to him. He had this feeling that they will lose another family member. Shigemori's face was becoming red. He can't believe how disrespectful his grandson was.

"Masamori, watch your tongue. There are still many things you don't know about kekkai technique. Besides, it's not even a week since your mother's death. You can't seriously want to leave us like this. We need you right now especially with Karasumori job," Shigemori raised his voice. His patient was becoming thin.

"Well, I am," Masamori slammed his hands on the table. He then pointed his hand at Yoshimori without breaking the eyes contact with Shigemori. "And for the last time, Karasumori is not my responsibility. It is that brat's responsibility. Why I have to shoulder this responsibility? I'm not even this family's legitimate successor."

"You don't really mean it! You can't seriously mean it!" Shigemori shouted.

"Yes, I am. Watch me leaving this place," Masamori stormed away from the room, pushing his way through his father and siblings to his bedroom.

"Masamori," Shigemori raised from his seat. "Come …cough…cough…..back ….cough…cough…. here….cough… I – I'm….."Shigemori couldn't continue his shout for he was coughing badly.

Shuji quickly move to Shigemori's side. He rubbed Shigemori's back to sooth Shigemori's pain. However, it didn't seem to have any effect. He then dashed to kitchen, getting a glass of water and Shigemori's medicine. He gave them to Shigemori. Shigemori swallowed the medicine carefully. It seemed to help him a bit. He didn't cough any more but he looked fragile.

"Father, are you okay?" Shuji asked worriedly.

Shigemori just nodded. Shuji wanted to chase after Masamori. Masamori needed to be reprimanded. But, he was hesitated and thorn apart. His father in law didn't look very well. He can't just leave him like that. His train of thoughts was stopped when he heard a sob. It came from Toshimori. Toshimori was scared and confused. The fight really scared him. Sure, his Grandpa and Masamori fought sometime but it was never as serious and as big as this. It confused him at the same time. He didn't know what to do. Shuji motioned Toshimori to come to him. He hugged Toshimori tightly, telling the little child that everything will be okay. It was then that he realized that Yoshimori was not there. Unfortunately, he had more important thing than finding Yoshimori. He needed to look after his father in law.

Yoshimori was watching Masamori as Masamori stuffed his clothes and things into his backpack. Masamori's words rang loudly in Yoshimori's mind. Masamori can't **truly** and **seriously** want to leave them. Yoshimori tried as best he can to push away this thought. He berated himself for doubting his elder brother. However, the words kept coming back to haunt him. It didn't look really good when Masamori just ignored him and continued packing his stuffs as if Yoshimori didn't exist at all. For some reasons, Yoshimori had this nagging feeling that if he didn't do something, he will lose another family member. So, he decided to make his presence, which was obvious, to be noticed.

"Umm….A – Aniki , what are you doing? Why are you packing your stuff?" Yoshimori asked in a timid voice.

There was no response. Masamori just ignored Yoshimori. He didn't pay any attention to what Yoshimori said. After packing his stuff into his backpack, he stormed away through Yoshimori, knocking Yoshimori down in the process. Yoshimori's fear and worry grew bigger and bigger. His elder brother isn't going to abandon them, right? They were his family. Yoshimori quickly picked himself up. He needed to go after Masamori. Surely, if he talked nicely to Masamori, Masamori will realize his mistake.

With that, he ran to Masamori as fast as his legs can run. It was difficult. Since he has a weak body, he spent most of his time at indoor rather than at outdoor. Therefore, he didn't really have as much as stamina like other kids in his age group. But, he won't give up. He'll give more than 100% to catch up with his elder brother. Yoshimori didn't stop even though he was starting to breathing and sweating heavily. Soon, he managed to catch up with Masamori. Yoshimori eagerly waved his hand to get his elder brother's attention.

"Aniki! Aniki! Wait up!" Yoshimori yelled on top of his lungs.

However, Masamori continued his strode as if nothing happened. Yoshimori kept running. Finally, he was able to reach his brother's side. He tugged Masamori's sleeves to indicate that he was there. Masamori just ignored him again. But, in Masamori's head, he cursed Yoshimori's persistence. Why can't Yoshimori just leave him alone?

"Aniki, wait up. Where are you going?" Yoshimori tugged Masamori's sleeves harder this time.

Unable to restrain his annoyance and irritation toward Yoshimori, Masamori snapped, "Where I'm going is none of your business. Now, go away."

With that, he pulled away his sleeves from Yoshimori's grip, causing Yoshimori to lose his balance and fell on the ground. It was very hurt. Yoshimori's right knee was bleeding from the fall. However, Yoshimori ignored his pain. He tried to catch up Masamori who didn't even bother to check Yoshimori's injury. He also didn't bother to slow down his pace to allow Yoshimori to catch up him.

"Aniki, please wait up and listen to me," Yoshimori stood in front of Masamori, spreading his arms to stop Masamori from leaving. "You can't seriously mean what you said before, right?"

Masamori stopped and said with annoyed voice, "Yes, I am. So, stop getting my way."

Masamori continued his strode. But, before he could leave Yoshimori behind, Yoshimori tackled Masamori.

"Aniki, please don't leave us. We need you right now," Yoshimori pleaded.

Of course, the strength of nine years old child cannot rival the strength of sixteen years old teen. Yoshimori was not able to knock down Masamori. In fact, Masamori didn't budge at all. With a dagger glare, Masamori pushed Yoshimori down, causing Yoshimori's head to hit on pavement.

"Well, I don't care," Masamori said without even looking at Yoshimori.

With that, Masamori continued his strode. This time Yoshimori didn't bother to get up at all. He didn't bother to call out Masamori. He just lay on his stomach, trying to figure out what had truly happened. Yoshimori wanted to deny it with all of his heart but he couldn't. Masamori truly abandoned them…

….when they needed him the most.

Yoshimori's eyes started to form tears at this sudden realization. He tried as best as he can to hold his tears. Slowly, he picked himself up. His head was hurt. He could feel there was a liquid on his forehead. As he swiped away the liquid, he realized it was his blood. His forehead must be bleeding from the fall. Yoshimori just ignored it. It didn't hurt as much as Masamori's betrayal. Then, another realization came to him.

He had lost another family member within a week.

Yoshimori couldn't hold his tears any more. He cried hard for his loss. He didn't even bother with his surrounding even though it was starting to rain. At first, it was light. Then, it became heavy. It was as if the rain was mourning together for the little boy's loss.


	3. Chapter 3: Yoshimori's Resolution

Disclaimer: I do not own Kekkaishi.

A/N. Okay, first of all, thank for the review. I'll see if I can write a longer chapter. But, it'll depend on how much free time I have. Anyway, let's continue with the story. Just don't forget to review after reading it.

Chapter 3: Yoshimori's Resolution

It's been three days since Masamori left them.

Shigemori watched his second grandson carefully. The said grandson was sleeping on futon, having a fever. Fortunately, his fever was starting to break. He could still remember clearly what happened after Yoshimori come back home on that rainy day. At first, Shigemori and the rest of family minus Masamori were alarmed when they saw Yoshimori soaked in the rain from head to toe. Not to mention, his forehead was bleeding. However, Yoshimori didn't seem to care about his condition.

Of course, Shuji quickly brought him inside, grabbed towel to dry him and treated his wound. Yoshimori didn't show any response at all as Shuji treated his wound. He didn't cry or make any voice when Shuji accidentally pressed hard the wound. Thinking that it was probably because Yoshimori was too tired or cold, Shuji made a cup of hot chocolate drink for Yoshimori. Again, Yoshimori acted strangely. He didn't touch the cup at all. It was strange because Yoshimori was always crazy with anything to do with sweet and chocolate thing. He never let chance to taste delicious chocolate drink to slip away like that.

Shigemori had to admit he was very worried about Yoshimori. He never saw Yoshimori in subdued state like this. Yoshimori's face was stoic as if nothing happened. However, Shigemori knew better. The boy was suffering and in despair. This didn't sit well with Shigemori. The boy always stayed cheerful no matter what happened. He never let anything upset him. Something terrible must happened to him. For some reasons, Shigemori has a hunch that Masamori had something to do with this.

His hunch became stronger when Shuji asked some questions, "Yoshimori, what had happened? Where is Masamori?"

Yoshimori didn't answer immediately. He just stared at them blankly and then to his cup. It was clear that this nine years old child was thinking how to break the news. Finally, he answered in a voice barely heard by Shigemori and Shuji.

"He abandons us," Yoshimori said in defeated tone.

The two adult looked at each other, unable to understand what Yoshimori said. Yoshimori can't be serious, right? However, from his look, the two adult knew better that he was serious. Still, they wanted further clarification.

"What you mean, Yoshimori?" Shigemori asked.

It was an easy question asked in a nice way by Shigemori. However, something inside Yoshimori snapped. He felt angry, despair, betrayed and helpless. In fact, Yoshimori himself didn't know where these feelings came from. He wasn't sure if he was angry because his Father and Grandpa were too stupid to understand three little words that he said. The sake of god, it was just only three words. Three words, damn it? It was straight forward too. Is it too hard to understand? Don't they understand English?

Then, there was this feeling of despair. He didn't know if it was because of his mother's death or because of Masamori's action. Probably both. These things happened to fast. He still hadn't finish mourning his mother's death. In just one week, he had lost two family members even though Masamori is still alive. This was too much for him to handle. For crying out loud, he was just only nine years old, damn it. Why did he have to face these things?

He too felt betrayed by Masamori. All this time, he always looked up at Masamori, seeing him as a great kekkaishi and amazing big brother. Masamori was always good in everything. He got good great at school, becoming the top student. Not to mention, he knew many awesome kekkai techniques. In short, he was everything that Yoshimori wanted to be. But, now, Yoshimori wasn't sure. Did he want to be like his big brother anymore? A big brother who abandoned his family just to join some unknown organization that god knew whether it was safe or not?

Finally, Yoshimori felt helpless. He was the legitimate successor of this family. And yet, there was nothing he could do. He couldn't save his mother from dying. He couldn't stop his brother from leaving them. What could he do actually? He wanted to do something. Anything that can fix this mess. And yet, there was nothing he can do. Is he really hopeless like Masamori said? Is he really a failure? Yoshimori wished he was strong. If he was strong, his mother won't die. If he was strong, Masamori won't leave them. His family won't be in this state.

Yoshimori was so deep in his thought that he barely heard Shigemori's question, "Yoshimori, what you mean by Masamori abandoned us?"

Unable to hold his emotions, Yoshimori lashed out, "He abandon us. Is it too hard to understand? Masamori abandons us?"

Shigemori and Shuji flinched at Yoshimori's outburst. They never saw him like this. The thing that bothered them the most was Yoshimori was not addressing Masamori as aniki like he used to do. Instead, he called Masamori by his name. Before they could stop him, Yoshimori stormed away from the room and locked himself in his bedroom. Shigemori could swear that he saw a tear at the corner of Yoshimori's eyes. They quickly rushed to Yoshimori's room.

Knocking the room gently, Shuji called out, "Yoshimori, open this door, please. What happened?"

"….." There was no answer.

"Yoshimori, if anything happen, you can talk to us." This time Shigemori tried.

"Go away," Yoshimori said loudly.

Shigemori knocked again, "Yoshimori, what had happened? Please open this door."

"Just go away….," Yoshimori trailed off, "…..please…"

For some reasons, the last word seemed to be a plea. Both adults looked at each other. They never saw Yoshimori like this. Perhaps, it was better to leave him alone to cool down. Maybe he will be more willing to answer their questions, hopefully. As Shigemori turned to leave the room, he could swear that he heard a cry coming from Yoshimori's room. He didn't know how right he was. Yoshimori cried as soon as his father and Grandpa leave. He did try to stop crying but failed miserably. His tears refused to stop. And that was how he spent the rest of night.

Shigemori could still remember clearly how he and Shuji tried to get Yoshimori out from his room. At first, his grandson refused to open the door, saying that he was alright. However, Shigemori knew better. Yoshimori was far from alright. He was just covering it up. After several tries, Yoshimori opened the door. Imagine how shocked Shigemori was when he saw Yoshimori with swollen red eyes. It seemed he had cried for hours which he denied it of course. When asked what had happened, Yoshimori refused to say anything. Whatever happened between Yoshimori and Masamori must be bad.

If that was not enough, Yoshimori had a high fever. Shigemori didn't know whether it was because Yoshimori soaked in the rain or it was because of things that happened recently. Shigemori suspected both. Yoshimori didn't speak much. He just talked when other people talked to him first. He only ate when Shigemori or Shuji told him to. Not to mention, he kept spacing out. It seemed Yoshimori was lost in his little own world. This was not a good sign. However, Shigemori didn't know how to help his grandson. He can't help if his grandson refused to open up to him.

Then, there was another problem with his son in law. Ever since Masamori leave them, Shuji seemed to be more depressed than before. He would suddenly lash out his anger and frustration at Toshimori. At the beginning, it was understandable. Shuji just lost his wife. However, it was starting to get out of control. Shigemori saw twice how Shuji beat up Toshimori just because Toshimori asked some simple questions. Thank god he was there to stop Shuji from beating Toshimori to death. Or else, they might lose another family member.

Of course, he needed to think about Toshimori too. The small child didn't eat and talk too much. In a way, Toshimori's condition was similar to Yoshimori's. However, he was more opened up. Shigemori had a lot of hard time to explain to Toshimori why he will never see Sumiko again. At first, the child was confused and threw a tantrum when Shigemori said Sumiko was dead and will never come back forever. Being a four years old child, it was hard for Toshimori to understand the concept of death. The concept was very foreign to him.

Shigemori sighed. It was very difficult. Shigemori felt he was too old to handle all these things. He didn't have the strength like he used to have. He too was not healthy. He's been coughing a lot nowadays. He knew with his current health, he was not cut to guard Karasumori anymore. Initially, he wanted Masamori to do it. Well, until Yoshimori was able to do it. However, it was not an option anymore since Masamori had left them. Shigemori had an urge to strangle the said teen to death. He then considered his youngest grandson. Toshimori was clearly not a choice. He was too young. In fact, he hadn't begun his training as a kekkaishi yet.

Shigemori obviously cannot ask Shuji about it. Shuji was not even a kekkaishi at all. Sure, he can use charm and spell. In fact, he could beat ayakashi using them. But, Shigemori doubted Shuji will agree after what had happened to Sumiko. Shuji never showed it openly but he never like Sumiko's job as a kekkaishi. It was too dangerous in his opinion and Shigemori didn't bother to change it because it was true. Besides, Shuji still didn't take Sumiko's death too well and had a hard time to deal with it. It didn't help at all when Masamori left. He became more depressed and withdrawal.

So, Shigemori was left with Yoshimori. Yoshimori did have a talent and potential to be a great kekkaishi. Probably better than him, Sumiko and Masamori combined together. But, can Yoshimori pull it off? That child maybe the legitimate successor of this family but he had a weak body. He often got sick and bedridden. Shigemori looked at Yoshimori and sighed again. His family had a lot of problems in their hand. He just hoped they can pull through them especially Yoshimori. With that, he retreated from Yoshimori's room to allow the young child to rest.

Unknown to Shigemori, he was not the only one who was thinking deeply. Yoshimori had done a lot of thinking in the last three days too. He didn't just stay quiet for nothing. Truthfully, Yoshimori didn't know what he should think. He can't think a solution to their current situation. Each time he thought, it will lead him to think 'what if' scenario. What if his mother was alive? What if Masamori was the legitimate successor? What if he was strong? What if he was never exist? Yoshimori shook at this thought. He shouldn't think about bad things. He was supposed to figure out solution. Not to imagine bad things.

But, he couldn't help it. A tiny part of him wanted what he imagined to come true. He often wondered if it was better for the 'what if' scenario to come true. Would it truly better for him to never exist? If he was never existed, Masamori probably will be happier. Masamori didn't have to be angry and deal with him anymore. Then, his mother and Grandpa don't have to be angry at Masamori too. Then, Masamori won't leave them. His family will be happier this way. There will be no more fight. And then, everyone will get along with each other. They will live happily ever after.

If only it was true.

Yoshimori stared at the ceiling. It was midnight now. His fever had completely broken away. However, he couldn't bring himself to sleep no matter how much he was tossing around. So, he decided to go to kitchen to have a drink. Maybe it will help him to go to sleep. He passed his Grandpa's room. He could hear cough coming from the room. Yoshimori made a mental note to ask his father to bring Grandpa to clinic or hospital. He didn't care if Grandpa hated hospital with passion. His cough was getting worse and worse. They cannot let it continued to happen.

Next, Yoshimori passed his father's room. The room's door barely opened with small slit. Yoshimori peeped through the slit. He saw his father was looking at his mother picture. He father wore a sad and depressed look on his face. Yoshimori knew how much his father loved his mother. It must be hard for his father to accept her death. Deciding it was better not to disturb, he proceeded his way to the kitchen. However, he was stopped by a sob coming from Toshimori's room. He peeped into Toshimori's room. Toshimori was indeed crying although he tried as hard as he can to stop crying.

Yoshimori suddenly had an urge to comfort Toshimori. He didn't know where this urge came from. Maybe the way Toshimori cried reminded him how he cried when Masamori betrayed him. Maybe it was brother's instinct. Yoshimori didn't know. However, Yoshimori knew one thing for sure. He needed to comfort Toshimori. He cannot leave Toshimori like that just like how…..Masamori leave him. He opened the slide door, causing Toshimori to be aware of his presence.

"Yo – Yoshi-nii, what ….sob…..are you….sob….doing here?" Toshimori asked in his sob.

"It's nothing. I just come to check you out," Yoshimori cuddled Toshimori. "What had happened? Did you have a bad dream?"

Toshimori nodded slightly, "Yeah, I had a bad dream. There's this monster tries to kill me."

"Don't worry. Nothing happens. It's just a dream and besides, I'm right here," Yoshimori said which made Toshimori felt comfortable and smiled.

Toshimori then looked at Yoshimori's eyes and asked, "Yoshi-nii, are we going to be okay?"

Yoshimori was taken aback by the question, "Why you ask such question?"

"I – I don't know. Masa-nii is not here….," Yoshimori winced at this. "…..and then Grandpa suddenly collapsed…" Toshimori's next words made Yoshimori shocked

"Wait, what you mean by Grandpa collapsed?" Yoshimori asked in worried tone. He never knew Grandpa collapsed until now.

Toshimori just nodded, "Uh – huh, Grandpa suddenly collapsed yesterday. But, the doctor said he was okay and probably too tired or something like that." Before Yoshimori could finish processing this new information, Toshimori continued, "Then, Father acts strangely too. He gets too moody and sometimes beats me up when I ask some question. But, Grandpa saved me. He said Father did that because Father was too sad with Mother's death."

Toshimori then showed the bruises and cuts he received. Yoshimori was shocked. How could he miss something like this? How could he don't know Grandpa collapsed? How could he don't notice Toshimori's injuries? How could he was so oblivious to his father's pain? Yoshimori felt very angry at himself. He should notice them. They were all happened under his nose and yet he didn't notice them. He wanted to yell Toshimori for not telling him these things immediately.

But then again, he was too busy with himself. He was so absorbed with his problems and 'little world' that he didn't bother to check everyone else. Yoshimori knew this well and was ashamed of himself. He should ask how everyone was and whether they were okay or not. He shouldn't just make an assumption that everyone was okay. In a way, Yoshimori felt he was acting like Masamori. Selfish and ignorance to other people. Well, that's going to change.

"_Look after the family when I'm gone."_

Yoshimori suddenly remembered his promise to his mother. That's right. He had to look after his family when Mother's gone. He had made this promise and he didn't have intention to break it. He will make his mother, no, his entire family proud of him. He will be the greatest kekkaishi in the whole world. He will not allow anyone get hurt like his mother again. He will protect everyone.

With new resolution, Yoshimori said firmly, "Its okay. Everything will be okay. I promise. Now, go get some sleep."

"Really," Toshimori's eyes lit up.

"Yeah."

Toshimori just nodded and went to sleep. He felt safe now. For some reasons, he knew his Yoshi-nii will keep his promise. It didn't take a long time for him to fall sleep. Yoshimori smiled warmly at this. His thought wandered to his conversation with Toshimori.

"_Everything will be okay."_

That's right.

Everything will be okay.

It had to be okay.

He will make sure of it.

Because he is Yoshimori Sumimura, the legitimate successor of Sumimura family.


	4. Chapter 4: Moving Forward

Disclaimer: I do not own Kekkaishi.

A/N: Sorry for the late update. Anyway, I make this chapter extra long to compensate for the late update. Any review will always be welcomed.

Chapter 4: Moving Forward

Yoshimori woke up early with a new resolve. He can't just keep wallowing in the past. He needed to focus on the present and the future. Mother would want him to enjoy his life as much as possible. She definitely will be sad if she knew they spent most of their time in depress and despair. That's why he will do anything in his power to cheer up his family. It's time for them to move on and continue with their life. But, Yoshimori didn't know from where to start. There were a lot of things he needed to do and think. Someone needed to look after the house. Their house was in a great mess.

Then, he needed to think how to help Grandpa with Karasumori job. Maybe he could ask Grandpa's advice. Besides that, he needed to focus on how to cheer up his father and Toshimori. They had been down lately. Thinking at his tasks, Yoshimori couldn't help to feel worry. There were so many things to do and work on. What if he failed to do any one of them? He still remembered how he tried to carry two big grocery bags on his own. It all started when Mother brought Masamori and him to do some shopping. Well, Masamori was reluctant to follow them.

They bought many things. Of course, Yoshimori helped in carrying a small grocery bag. However, Masamori, being Masamori, made fun of him, saying he was too weak and can't carry a bigger bag. Yoshimori didn't think it funny or let it slide away. To prove Masamori was wrong, he insisted to carry two big grocery bags at the same time. Unfortunately, the bags were too heavy for him. Consequently, he tripped off and fell on the ground, spilling the bags' contents. Needless to say, Masamori took the opportunity to rub it off on his face with his "I told you so' remark and told him how mad Mother will be.

Yoshimori was really scare back then. He couldn't help to cry. True, Sumiko was a gentle and caring person. But, that was as long as you didn't get to her bad side. If you did, well the only thing that you may do was to pray that you were not receiving the end of her wrath. It was said that her wrath was extremely unpleasant and should be avoided at all cost. However, instead of being mad at him, she just picked up the grocery and gently gave him an advice with a smile. Yoshimori could still remember the advice.

"_Sometimes, it's better to do things step by step rather than trying to do everything at once." _

With the advice in his mind, he decided to list down things the chore works. This should give him an idea on what to do. Of course, his first priority was to cheer up his family. They had been down far too long. It was not healthy and Mother will definitely not approve it. Yoshimori picked up a paper and a pencil. Soon, he started jotting down things. By the time he finished, he had listed down quite a number of things. Needless to said, Yoshimori was pleased with himself. He decided the first thing he's going to do was to fix a breakfast. Toshimori, Grandpa and Father will definitely be hungry when they woke up. They will be happy if they had something as a breakfast. So, Yoshimori proceeded to the kitchen with happy thought until a question hit his head.

What should he prepare for breakfast?

Yoshimori raked his mind. What Mother often prepared for breakfast? Well, breakfast always depended if Mother had enough time or not. If Mother had enough time which was unusual since she often woke up late because of her night work as kekkaishi, she would prepare simple rice and miso soup as breakfast. If not, she would prepare toast or cereal with milk. So, Yoshimori decided to made breakfast that Sumiko often made which was toast and cereal. Toshimori loved to eat sugary cereal especially with milk. Father and Grandpa will be happy with the toast. He hoped just it was enough for his family. After all, his family had a big appetite.

With that, Yoshimori took out some breads, butter and jams. He spread some butter on breads and put them on the toaster. He then went to fridge and took out milk from it. Now, where to find the cereal box? Yoshimori remembered vaguely that Mother often kept the cereal box in the cabinet. He then opened and rummaged the cabinet to find the cereal box. He later found out that someone put it at a high place. Now, this posed a problem to Yoshimori. Being a short kid, it was impossible for him to reach the place. Yoshimori had tried to stand on toe and reached the cereal box several times but failed. He scratched his head to find a solution.

Suddenly, an idea came to him. He could use chair to reach the cereal box. It didn't take a long time for Yoshimori to remove the chair near to the cabinet. Even with the help of chair, the cereal box was still out of Yoshimori's reach. Yoshimori tried to stand on his toe. Now, the box was an inch from his grab. He just needed to stretch his hand more. A bit more. A little bit more. There. Finally, Yoshimori managed to grab the cereal box. Yoshimori patted himself for his accomplishment. Well, that was until he heard a voice from behind of him.

"Yoshi-nii, what are you doing?" Toshimori asked curiously.

Yoshimori was startled. He lost his balance on the chair and fell on the floor with the cereal box in his hand. Luckily, the box was not crushed when he fell down. Toshimori quickly went to his brother's side.

Helping Yoshimori to sit down, Toshimori asked, "Are you okay, Yoshi-nii? What are you doing?"

Yoshimori just grinned, "I'm making breakfast for us. Want some?"

Toshimori blinked, unsure what to say, "But, isn't Mother always the one who make the breakfast? Will it be okay?" There was a worry in his tone.

Yoshimori frowned, "Don't worry. Nothing will happen." He then grinned and gave a thumb up, "Everything will be okay. I'll make sure it myself."

Toshimori couldn't help but smiled and chuckled at his brother's antic. For some reasons, it comforted him and made him felt safe. He always wondered what would happen now that Mother had died. It was scary to imagine a future without a mother. But, Toshimori thought he didn't need to worry about it anymore. He had a reliable big brother beside him.

"So, what is our breakfast?" Toshimori asked.

If there were things that made Yoshimori happy, it was to see his family happy again. It felt nice and good to see Toshimori smiling and laughing. It's been quite a time since Toshimori laughing and smiling like that.

"Toast with some jams and sugary cereal," Yoshimori said. "Which one you like?"

"Sugary cereal," Toshimori exclaimed. "….with milk of course."

"Okay, okay," Yoshimori chuckled. "Let's make it then. I want to eat toast."

As if on cue, the toast popped out from the toaster. Yoshimori poured milk and cereal into a bowl for Toshimori. Toshimori happily grabbed spoon and ate his breakfast. Yoshimori took a toast, spread some jams on it and ate it. It didn't take a long time for them to finish their breakfast. Yoshimori cleaned up the table while Toshimori looked at him curiously.

"Hey, wanna help me cleaning up the house?" Yoshimori asked.

Toshimori blinked and thought for a moment, "Okay, why not? What we're going to do first?"

Yoshimori scratched his head and took out his list. "Let's clean up living room and the hallway first. Then, we could do laundry and wash the dishes."

"Can we do our own lunch?" Toshimori asked eagerly.

Apparently, this whole idea got him excited. Besides, it's been a while he spent some quality time with his brother. Father was very moody lately and Toshimori wasn't sure if it was alright to ask Father to play with him. As for Grandpa, he was not healthy and needed to have a lot of rest.

"Of course," Yoshimori said, ruffling Toshimori's hair.

With that, they set to do their job. Their first job is to clean the living room. The living room was in a mess. There were many scattered toys, books, dirty clothes and dishes in that room. The room really needed a throughout cleaning. Toshimori gathered his scattered toys and put them in a box. Yoshimori rearranged books into their shelf. Later, they picked up dirty clothes and put them into a basket. As for the dirty dishes, they put them in sink so they can wash it later. After one hour, the room looked acceptably clean. All they needed to do now was to vacuum the room. It was very easy.

If only they knew how to use a vacuum cleaner.

Yoshimori had to admit he didn't really know much about doing house chores since Mother never really let him did them due to his illness. But, he often watched her doing house chores. So, he at least had the general idea how to do it. Yoshimori scratched his head. If he was not mistaken, he needed to plug in the vacuum cleaner first. So, why it didn't work even though he had done it? Yoshimori shook it several times to get it worked. But, nothing happened. He then held the 'sucking part' of vacuum cleaner closed to his face to inspect what's wrong with it.

Toshimori , on the other hand, was inspecting the vacuum cleaner body. He found a 'funny button' on it. Of course, like any other four years old child, Toshimori had a curiosity that needed to be satisfied. The child's mind kept asking what this 'funny button' can do. Too bad, nobody told him to think the consequence first before doing anything. So, he did the only thing that can satisfy his curiosity. Toshimori pushed the button while Yoshimori was **still** holding the 'sucking part' of vacuum cleaner closed to his face. The result was something both Toshimori and Yoshimori didn't expect at all.

The vacuum cleaner suddenly became **'alive'**, sucking away Yoshimori's hair.

Yoshimori frantically tried to free his hair from the evil vacuum cleaner's grip. It won't do a good thing for him to be bald at such early age like Grandpa. Toshimori was speechless for a moment. Then, he remembered the vacuum cleaner came alive because he pushed that 'funny button'. Maybe if he pushed again, it would stop. He quickly pushed again the button. Miraculously, the vacuum cleaner stopped its assault on Yoshimori and dropped dead. Yoshimori looked at Toshimori for explanation.

"He-he, I guess I push the wrong button," Toshimori said sheepishly.

Yoshimori just shook his head. But, there were good things happened from this little accident. They now know how to use the vacuum cleaner. It didn't take a long time for them to vacuum the room once Yoshimori mastered the basic art of using a vacuum cleaner which was how to activate and deactivate it. Besides, Yoshimori didn't go bald from the little accident except getting a messy hair. So, it wasn't a total loss for them. After that, they cleaned up the hallway. They mopped the hallway to the point they can see their reflection on it.

Next, they decided to wash the dirty dishes. Since the sink was out of his reach, Yoshimori had to stand on chair. He just hoped he won't fall like before. Since there were too many dirty dishes, they decided to divide the work. Yoshimori will wash the dishes while Toshimori will dry them one by one using a table clothes. Things ran smoothly. They didn't have any problem at all. Soon, there were no dirty dishes in the sink. So far, there was no misfortune event that happened. This made Yoshimori felt happy. Nothing can block his path now. Well, that was until….

….he decided to do the laundry.

Yoshimori blinked at the washing machine. He vaguely remembered that each time Mother did a laundry, she will put the dirty clothes into washing and then poured some liquids from different bottles into it. Yoshimori scratched his head. He had put the dirty clothes a much as possible into the washing machine. Now, the problem was what kinds and how much these liquid should he use? Yoshimori berated himself for not paying attention when Mother did laundry. Yoshimori held the bottles to inspect them closely. If he remembered clearly, Mother put this so called detergent to remove the stain from dirty clothes. Then, she put this softener to make them felt soft.

Yoshimori tried to remember Mother's tips on laundry. He contemplated how much detergent and softener. Mother always said that it was harder to remove dirt and stain from clothes if you left them unwashed for a long time. Yoshimori wasn't sure. She usually used one full cap of detergent and softener. But, the dirty clothes had been left piling up for many days. One full cap probably would not be enough. Maybe he should pour the whole bottles. After all, it wouldn't hurt to be cautious. Mother always told them to be cautious. And so, Yoshimori poured the whole bottles into the washing machine.

While Yoshimori was busy deciding how much detergent he should use, Toshimori was wondering why his brother had difficult time with it. Toshimori thought it was probably because the stain was too stubborn. He then suddenly had this brilliant idea. He searched around for a bottle. If he remembered correctly, this bottle had the power to remove anything from clothes even the most stubborn of the most stubborn stain in the whole world. Once he found it, he handed Yoshimori over a small blue bottle. Yoshimori watched it curiously.

"Yoshi-nii, use this bu-reesh….errr…..blissshh thing" Toshimori said excitedly despite unable to pronounce it correctly.

"Hmmm, what's this? It says bleach," Yoshimori raised his eyebrows.

"Use it," Toshimori exclaimed.

Yoshimori stared at the blue bottle. This blue bottle had a liquid in it that can remove any stubborn stain and dirt if he was corrected. Mother used it once on Aniki's white shirt. It turned the muddy, dirty shirt into a spotless white shirt. This probably will prove to be useful. Without thinking its side effects on **colorful** clothes, he poured the whole bottle of bleach into the washing machine. Yoshimori smiled with satisfaction. Now, the clothes will definitely be cleaned properly. Now, he just needed to get this washing machine worked.

How he was supposed to do it?

Yoshimori scratched his head for numerous times. The vacuum cleaner got worked because Toshimori pushed some buttons on it. Maybe it will work the same way again. There were many buttons on the washing machine. Which one should he pushed? This was a big thing. Well, for a boy who never really a laundry without a direct guidance from an adult. He didn't want thing to end up like with the vacuum cleaner. But, after spending time thinking a solution, he couldn't think any solution. Well, he might as well push all these buttons. Nothing bad could happen, right? And that was the exactly thing he did. Luckily, nothing bad happened…..

….for now.

Yoshimori grinned. Now, he just needed to wait for the washing machine to clean the clothes. Then, he will dry them at the backyard. It was simple enough. To say he was pleased was an understatement. He was extremely pleased. They had managed to do almost everything in his list to do. It will take some time before the washing machine stopped. So, Yoshimori decided it was better for him to prepare lunch while waiting it. Besides, it was almost lunch time and his stomach was starting to rumble. Toshimori may feel the same too.

"Let's make some lunch. What do you want to eat, Toshimori?" Yoshimori asked.

"Curry. I want to eat curry. Maybe chicken curry," Toshimori exclaimed excitedly.

"Sure, sure," Yoshimori chuckled.

Yoshimori took out a rice cooker. It felt weird if they didn't have rice to go along with curry. He put three cups of rice into a pot and rinsed them three times. Each time he rinsed them, he stirred them with his hand and then drained them. Unfortunately, he stirred too much until some of rice split from the pot. After the third rinse, there was lesser rice in the pot. Of course, it didn't go unnoticed by Toshimori.

"Yoshi-nii, you stir the rice too much. Look, you spilt the rice," Toshimori pointed out.

"No, I don't. The rice just somehow gets spilt," Yoshimori defended himself.

"Not true."

"It is."

"Is not."

"It is."

"Is not."

"Look, Toshimori, can't you just let it go?" Yoshimori said in irritated tone.

"Nuh – uh, Grandpa always says not to waste food," Toshimori retorted back. "And this clearly wasting food."

"Am not."

"Am too."

"Am not."

"Am too."

Anyone who had seen their bickering will definitely thing it was cute. This was what Shizue Yukimura thought when she encountered this scene although she won't admit it loudly. They would definitely not like it and upset if they knew. The two children were oblivious of her presence since they were too absorbed with their fight. She had come from the backdoor to deliver their lunch as usual. Their bickering seemed had something to do with rice or food. She hoped she didn't bring their lunch too late. It won't do to let them starve. But, first, she needed to stop their bickering. So, Shizue decided to make her presence.

"Umm, can I know why you are fighting?" Shizue asked.

Both boys were startled. They didn't notice her at all. This made them embarrassed because someone actually saw their childish argument. Yoshimori was the first one to wake up from his stupor.

"Nothing. We're just making our lunch," Yoshimori answered, attracting Shizue's attention.

"Lunch?" Shizue raised her eyebrows.

"Yeah, we're trying to make our own lunch," Toshimori stepped in. "We also did many house chores too."

"Really? Like what?" Shizue asked curiously. It's been a quite a while for her to see the child in front of her smiling and active like that.

"We fixed our own breakfast, cleaned living room and hallway and then, we washed dishes….." Toshimori counted with his fingers. "Oh – oh, we did laundry too. All by ourselves. But, since it's not finished yet, we try to make lunch," he finished with a beam.

But, Toshimori's joy was cut when the washing machine suddenly made a loud noise and shaking violently. Then, colorful bubbles and foams started to pour out from it. Shizue was the first one to act. She quickly switched off the power supply to stop the washing machine. She carefully opened its lid as the boys approached her. To say she was surprised was an understatement as she picked up their father's once red favorite necktie that turned into pink.

Turning to the boys, she asked gently, "May I know how you two did the laundry?"

Both boys tensed and cringed at the questions. Yoshimori didn't really know what had happened but he had a good guess it was because of something that they did. Hopefully it was not that bad. But, considering they had ruined Father's favorite necktie it must be pretty bad.

"Well we just put dirty clothes in it. Then, we poured in a whole bottle of detergent and softener. Ah, that's right, we put a whole bottle of bleach too," Yoshimori explained, trying not to leave any detail out.

Shizue shook her head, "Yoshimori, you can't just pour a whole bottle of them at once or put too much clothes in washing machine like that. You'll overload it."

"Sorry," Yoshimori muttered silently but enough for Shizue heard it.

"It's okay," Shizue smiled, trying to reassure Yoshimori.

Yoshimori couldn't help but felt a little down. Everything was running smoothly. Okay except for the tiny accident with the vacuum cleaner. But, overall, everything ran according to his plan. Then, he did something stupid with the washing machine. And what made it worse, Tokine's mother saw it. He will never hear the end of it from Tokine when her mother told her. Maybe – maybe he's a failure like what Masamori said. He can't even do simple laundry correctly at all. Yoshimori shook at this thought. Now is not the time for negative thought. He needed to be strong.

For the sake of his family.

For his own sake.

That's right. He shouldn't give up like this. Yoshimori strengthened his resolution. Yoshimori pondered his predicament. If only he had someone to teach him how to do the house chores, he'll definitely be able to do them properly. Of course, he was grateful with Shizue's help in cooking their food. But, this can't keep going on like this. They can't continue relying on the Yukimura's help. The Yukimuras too had their own life. But, who can teach him? Toshimori was just like him. Toshimori too didn't know much about doing house chores. And Yoshimori definitely can't bother Grandpa and Father with something small like this.

"You know, if you want, I can teach you how to do laundry."

Yoshimori blinked. Did he hear thing correctly? Or, was he hallucinated? Did Tokine's mother really offer to teach him how to do the laundry? But, she didn't seem to be joking around. Maybe this was a good opportunity. Tokine's mother is a full housewife. Surely she knew many things about house chore.

"Really?" Yoshimori asked for confirmation.

"Yes," Shizue answered gently.

"Then, can you teach me how to do all the house chore? Like cooking, cleaning and washing?" Yoshimori asked eagerly.

"Sure but first let us fix the lunch. I'm sure everyone his hungry," Shizue smiled.

As if own cue, Yoshimori's stomach suddenly growled. For a moment, there was a silent before it broke into laugh. Yoshimori's face was red. He was embarrassed for letting everyone heard his stomach's growl. But, perhaps, it was a good thing. Things were starting to get better. He is now learning how to do the house chores. Perhaps, he could ask Grandpa to help him in his kekkaishi's training. But, deep in his heart, Yoshimori knew it was still a long way before this family overcame this trial and got back to its track.

But, it's okay.

They'll overcome it.

Step by step.

Together as a family.

And he will make sure of it.


	5. Chapter 5: Obstacles

Disclaimer: I do not own Kekkaishi

Chapter 5: Obstacles

"I want to take over the kekkaishi job," Yoshimori said without a hint of hesitation.

Instantly, everyone stopped eating the dinner and turned their attention to Yoshimori. Silence reigned in the room. It was as if the time froze. Well, it was probably because the declaration was too sudden. One minute he said he wanted to go back to school in cheerful tone, saying he skipped school way too much and will be left behind if this continued. Another minute, he suddenly declared he wanted to take over the kekkaishi job in serious tone complete with serious face. Needless to say, this declaration earned different reaction from everyone.

Shigemori blinked for numerous times. This was so unexpected, so sudden, so…..so shocking to hear such serious declaration coming from a child like Yoshimori. Shigemori couldn't help but wondering whether his illness or age had caught up with him. Or maybe he was dreaming. There was no hesitation in Yoshimori's declaration. What had brought this? Three days ago, his eyes were dimmed with sorrow, despair and betrayal. Now, there was a burning resolution and determination in his eyes.

"Why?"

The question barely came out of Shigemori mouth. Shigemori knew he can come up with a better question than that. But, that was the only thing he could think of. His mind was still numbed with Yoshimori's declaration.

"Well, I figure that we can't let the Yukimuras handle Karasumori alone forever. They've been filling in the spot for us for more than one week. I think one week is more than enough. They too have other things they need to do," Yoshimori munched his foods.

Shigemori glanced at Toshimori and Shuji to see their reaction. Toshimori had stopped eating his dinner and sat silently. Shuji, on the other hand, was tensed. His body was rigid. Shigemori had a feeling there will be impending outburst from Shuji.

"Besides, someone needs to continue the family business. Toshimori is too young. Masamori is gone (at this name, Yoshimori's voice became bitter). Father is too busy with his work. You're too sick. So, I'm the only choice," Yoshimori said it as a matter of fact. "Besides, I'm this family's legitimate successor after all."

Something snapped inside Shuji when he heard this. His son's going to follow his wife's footstep. He's going to become kekkaishi like his wife. Like the hell he's going to allow his son to be associated with that… that cursed land. He didn't care if this family saw Karasumori as a sacred land. To him, it was a cursed land. Shigemori could see Shuji's escalating anger based on the fact that Shuji just crashed his chopstick in his hand. Shigemori just could hope that this didn't turn worse.

"No," Shuji said in a void voice.

However, Shigemori knew better. Shuji was suppressing his anger. They were walking on a thin ice. Unfortunately, Yoshimori didn't pick up the change in atmosphere. He looked at his father quizzically.

"I won't allow you," Shuji said sternly.

Yoshimori blinked, "Why can't I?"

"Because it's dangerous," Shuji reasoned.

"It's okay. I can use kekkai technique and know how to protect myself," Yoshimori argued back.

"You don't really know how to use it effectively," Shuji glared.

"Then, I'll ask Grandpa to help me in training," Yoshimori didn't back down.

Shigemori had a hunch that this conversation was starting to get out of control. Both sides were glaring at each other. Neither side wanted to back down. Apparently, Toshimori felt the same. So, he moved closer to Shigemori.

"I'm not going to let you go there **alone** by youself!" Shuji shouted, knocking over his rice bowl and cup as he slammed his hands on table.

"But, I'm not going there alone by myself. Madarao will come with me. And then, there's Tokine and her father too," Yoshimori made his argument.

"Yeah, sure. Look what had happened to your mother," Shuji said sarcastically.

Shigemori and Toshimori sweat dropped. This was definitely not good. This conversation had become really, really bad. Deep inside Shigemori's mind, he wished his son in law didn't say something like that. Sure, Yoshimori never said anything regarding Sumiko's death. But, that didn't mean her death didn't affect him. In fact, Shigemori had a suspicious that Sumiko's death was part of reason why Yoshimori wanted to take over the kekkaishi job.

"Shut up! It won't happen again!" Now, it was Yoshimori turned to yell and slam his hands on table.

"And how you are sure?"

"I'll make sure of it. I'll be the greatest kekkaishi in the world," Yoshimori declared.

"Yeah, good luck with it. You can't even match with Masamori," Shuji mocked.

The words stung Yoshimori to the core. It reminded Yoshimori greatly how Masamori insulted his skills. To add salt on his already wounded heart, his father just had to compare him with Masamori, his treacherous brother. It hurt so much. Yoshimori tried as best as he can to hide it. However, it didn't go unnoticed by Shigemori.

"That doesn't matter. I don't care, I still want to do it and I'll start tomorrow," Yoshimori shouted, ignoring his father's glare.

Shuji abruptly stood and shouted on top of his lungs, "Then go die like your mother!"

With that, he stormed away from the room but not before Yoshimori yelled angrily, "I won't!"

Silence reigned in the room again. Yoshimori was breathing heavily and his body was shaking with anger. He tried as best as he can to keep his emotion in check. But, it proved too much for him. Before Shigemori could say anything, Yoshimori bolted out from the room. Shigemori barely saw a single tear shed from Yoshimori's eyes. It bothered Shigemori so much. As much as he was bothered by how Yoshimori addressed Masamori.

Yoshimori just called Masamori as Masamori and not aniki like he used to do. Not to mention, there was bitterness in his voice when the boy said Masamori's name. Shigemori did try to found out what had truly happened between Yoshimori and Masamori before Masamori ran away from home. But, each time he raised a question on this subject, it will either be met with silence or Yoshimori changed the topic into other things. It can't be that bad, right?

Then, there was another thing with Shuji. Shuji was too harsh on the boy. True, his son in law had the right to be worried about Yoshimori. Karasumori is a dangerous place after all no matter how experiences you are. But, that didn't mean he can lash out like that to Yoshimori. It's not right especially when he brought out about Sumiko and Masamori. Yoshimori may not show it but Shigemori knew better. These two subjects were sensitive to Yoshimori. He was not fooled with Yoshimori's fake smile and cheerful attitude.

"I just hope that boy can cope with everything," Shigemori thought.

Two months had passed away since the incident. In these two months, many things had happened. The Sumimura family was starting to adjust to their life without Sumiko and Masamori. It was a slow progress but it was better than nothing. Shizue, Tokine's mother, had been kindly enough to teach Yoshimori all things he needed to know about house chores. She even gave him useful tips to him. Now, Yoshimori was able to do laundry, cooking, cleaning and washing all by himself. Soon, Shizue didn't need to stop by to send their lunch or dinner.

Of course, from time to time, he would seek advice from Shizue especially regarding shopping. He never knew there were many rules and tactics in shopping groceries. For example, you needed to have a great speed to snatch goods when there is promotional sale. Shizue had explained to him that sometimes the mall will give a high discount for their goods. So, many people a.k.a housewives would compete with each other to get their hands on these goods. And they really are competitive. After all, who don't want great goods at cheap price? It's just that Yoshimori never knew how competitive they were.

Yoshimori could still remember how he was squashed and tramped over when Shizue brought him to some mega sales. It was like a battlefield. Everyone tried to outdo each other. If you're slow, you'll get nothing. Well, Yoshimori didn't really think it was bad. At least, it helped him to develop some speed. Yoshimori always believed Karasumori is a dangerous place. But, apparently, shopping mall that held mega sales can rival its dangerousness. At those mega sales, Shizue had taught him how to pick goods, how to bargain with sale person and many more.

Yoshimori also had started his duty as Karasumori's guardian. It was tough at the beginning especially if you're not used to staying wake late at night. With Shigemori's help, Yoshimori's skill in kekkai technique showed some improvement. He learnt to use kekkai technique in various ways. He can use his kekkai to trap his enemy and lift an object. He also learnt how to strengthen his kekkai so his enemy can't get away from it easily. Yoshimori had to admit that this technique is interesting and practical. You can use it outside battle. For example, you can cast sound proof kekkai to avoid noise when you desperately need some sleep.

Other than kekkai technique, Shigemori also help Yoshimori to improve his skill on restoration and shikigami technique. Both techniques are useful to Yoshimori. With restoration technique, Yoshimori can fix any damage on property inflicted during his battle with ayakashi. As for shikigami technique, he can use it to send massage to other people or order them to do work. Needless to say, Yoshimori used it to its full advantage in helping him with house chores which allowed him to practice more and do house chores in short time.

Yoshimori too had returned to his school. At the beginning, it was very awkward and hard. He didn't really know how to face everyone especially his classmates because of his long absence. Not to mention, he was way behind everyone in study. Luckily, his teachers were kind enough to him. They helped him to catch up with everything. Soon, it didn't take a lot of time for Yoshimori to catch up with everyone. However, he only had a small problem in school. He often (well, most of the time) fell asleep in the class, much to his teacher's irritation.

Of course it was not surprising, considering Yoshimori had to guard Karasumori at night and go to school in the morning. Not to mention, he had to do the house chores and training after school. So, he had only short time for sleep at home. Needless to say, it created troubles for him. The teachers weren't pleased with Yoshimori's habit of sleeping in the class. Well, that was until Yoshimori explained the whole situation except for the Karasumori and his kekkaishi job part of course. After that, his teachers didn't really make noise about it for various reasons.

First, they didn't have the heart to scold him after listening to his story. Really, who can be mad at a small child who just lost his mother and needed to care for his family after school? Second, Yoshimori always did his homework and studied hard. Each time they asked a question, the boy was always able to answer it. In fact, he was sometimes ahead of his classmates. So, overall, Yoshimori's teachers didn't really have problem with Yoshimori's habit. It's just that they wished Yoshimori could tone it down a bit. Therefore, Yoshimori didn't really have problem with his day to day life except with..….

…his father.

Why can't his father understand how important it is to protect Karasumori? Sure, Yoshimori can see his father's logic. Karasumori is a dangerous pace and not a place for a child like him. But, can't he see that leaving Karasumori unprotected is more dangerous than protecting it? It was not like he did it for fun or fame like his father said or accused. For the past two months, they had cold war with each other. Father always acted coldly toward him, declaring he will only stop if Yoshimori stopped being a kekkaishi. Needless to say, it led to more fights between them.

Yoshimori sighed. He knew he can't leave Karasumori to its own device. If he did, the ayakashi, small or large, will definitely swarm the land to absorb its power. Grandpa had explained to him what happened to ayakashi that absorbed Karasumori's power. Sure, they become more powerful. But, if they absorbed too much, they lost their mind and become mindless killing creatures. They will not stop rampaging and killing everything around them until someone stopped them. This was the reason why they put a collar on their dog ayakashi, Madarao. They needed to ensure Karasumori didn't influence Madarao.

The collar did more than stopping Karasumori's influence. It also sealed away Madarao's true form. Yoshimori never saw his true form. But, Grandpa said he was a strong and big ayakashi. That was why Yoshimori should never take off the collar under any circumstances. Madarao had been with Sumimura family ever since their family guarded Karasumori. Their kekkai technique founder, Tokimori Hazama, had given them Madarao to assist them in their duty. With his sensitive nose, Madarao helped them to track down the ayakashi.

Sure, Madarao could be annoying sometimes with his stupid teasing but he is also a good companion. Whenever Yoshimori felt down and had problem, he will be there to offer some advices and encouragement on his problems especially regarding his father. Yoshimori did try to make peace with his father like making his favorite foods. Unfortunately, every attempt met with dead end. Still, Yoshimori persistently tried to make amend. However, Yoshimori had limit on his patience too. His father really tested his patience sometimes especially this particular night.

Everything was fine at the beginning. They had a good dinner. Then, Yoshimori played a bit with Toshimori. After putting Toshimori in his futon, Yoshimori got ready to go to Karasumori. He put on his purple kekkaishi robe and grabbed his tenketsu. Yoshimori was at doorway and about to go when Shuji showed up unexpectedly. He wore unpleasant expression on his face. Instantly, Yoshimori knew in his heart where this will lead to. Something he tried to avoid as best as he can.

"Where are you going?" Shuji asked.

"Going to Karasumori," Yoshimori answered obviously.

"I forbid you," Shuji said sternly.

"Don't you think we hade this discussion a lot," Yoshimori sighed.

"Then, you know why I hate you go there!"

'I know but…" Yoshimori said slowly

"Don't you remember what happened to your mother?" Shuji shouted. "Why you are so stubborn and selfish?"

At this point, something snapped inside Yoshimori. "Selfish? I'm selfish? You're the one who are selfish!" Yoshomori shouted.

Yoshimori was trembling with anger. A single tear started to form in his eyes which he quickly squashed it, much to Shuji's shock.

"You're not the only one who is sad about Mom's death. Grandpa, Toshimori and I are sad too." Yoshimori stopped to catch a breath. "If you think I don't know how dangerous Karasumori is, you're wrong. Of course I know but like the hell I'm going to let other people die like Mom!"

With that, Yoshimori stormed away to Karasumori, leaving behind a shocked Shuji to think what had truly happened.


	6. Chapter 6: Protecting Is Hard

Disclaimer: I do not own Kekkaishi.

Chapter 6: Protecting Is Hard

Yoshimori gritted his teeth. He didn't slow down his pace at all even though Madarao called out to him. How could Father call him selfish? He was not selfish. Father didn't have the right to call him selfish especially when Father acted more selfish than him. Sure, he may be stubborn. But, at least, he didn't lock himself almost entire day in his room like Father. At least, he didn't neglect his family members who are still **alive**. Hell, if he wanted, he can continue with the list.

Yoshimori slowed his pace as he's approaching Karasumori. He took a deep breath, trying to calm himself down. Okay, maybe he was too harsh. He shouldn't just yell at him like that. But, someone needed to give Father a wake up call. Father can't just live in depress for the rest of his life. Deep in Yoshimori's heart, he hoped he can tell that to his father without involving a great fight. As he jumped over the school's gate, he decided to have a heart to heart conversation when he came home. Maybe, if he told what he thought, Father would understand and accept his decision. Unfortunately, he had to face another source of his problem and irritation right now.

Tokine.

Tokine was standing at the school's entrance with his ayakashi partner, Hakubi. Hakubi was a dog ayakashi like Madarao too. He has brown furs and wore a collar around her neck. Hakubi was younger than Madarao by 100 years old. However, he can be as annoying as Tokine. That's why she and Madarao were not in a good term.

'Oh, please….. please don't let her babbling about who's the best kekkaishi or something like that," Yoshimori pleaded mentally.

Unfortunately, fate was not at his side tonight. His plead was not answered at all. As Tokine opened her mouth, Yoshimori braced himself.

"You're late, Yoshimori. If you keep going like this, I'm going to win against you," Tokine pointed finger at Yoshimori.

"Well, I don't really care about that," Yoshimori scanned the area. "Does any ayakashi show up?"

"Hey, don't change the subject. Tonight, I'm going to show who is a better kekkaishi between us," Tokine exclaimed.

Yoshimori sighed. Honestly, what's her problem with him? Why the hell she so desperately wanted to compete with him? For the sake of god, this was not some hunting game. They are fighting with ayakashi that can rip them apart instantly for crying out loud. Of course, he knew their family had a long history of rivalry. They had competed for almost 400 years. It was almost in their blood. But, that didn't mean Tokine should let the rivalry get in their way. It shouldn't stop them from working with each other.

Yoshimori could still remember clearly what happened three days ago. They had a bad luck that night. A huge ayakashi intruded Karasumori. Instead working together, Tokine tried to take it down alone. Needless to say, it almost ended in disaster. It was only because of momentary lapse of opportunity that Yoshimori could wound the ayakashi heavily. Then, Tokine used this advantage to metsu it. Of couse it ended well. But, they could end it faster if they worked together. Yoshimori had told this many times to Tokine. Unfortunately, she didn't really listen to it. He just hoped that it didn't take another person to die or hurt to make Tokine listened to him.

"Madarao, did you smell any ayakashi?" Yoshimori asked Madarao, choosing to ignore Tokine much to her displeasure.

"Hey, don't just ignore me like that," Tokine shouted.

However, Tokine didn't have time to finish her rant for an ayakashi suddenly chose that time to intrude Karasumori. Both of them glanced at each other with a knowing look. Tonight's ayakashi is big and maybe strong. But, they can still handle it without their grandparent's help. Before Yoshimori could say anything, Tokine took off with Hakubi.

"Let's see who destroy the ayakashi first," Tokine challenged.

With that, she took out a smoke bomb and threw it at Yoshimori. Yoshimori coughed becaused of the smoke. When the smoke had disappeared, Tokine and Hakubi had already gone.

Yoshimori groaned inwardly, "Great, let's just hope she doesn't get into trouble." Turning to Madarao, Yoshimori said, "Lead the way, Madarao."

"Sure thing," Madarao flashed his grin.

**xxxxxxxxxxxxx**

Tokine was standing on a bridge over a pond. She scanned the surrounding for the presence of ayakashi. Hakubi said the ayakashi was somewhere around here. Unfortunately, she didn't saw anything. There was no sign of ayakashi, making her paused for a moment.

"Hakubi, are you sure it's here?" Tokine questioned.

"Yeah, it's around here," Hakubi sniffed the air. "If I have to pinpoint it, it's under the bridge."

"Okay, let's get it now," Tokine replied.

Tokine took her tenketsu and tried to steer the ayakashi out from under the bridge. Then, a shadow suddenly fled away from the bridge, passing through Tokine and Hakubi. This surprised them. It took a moment for Tokine to regain her composure.

"That's the ayakashi, Honey," Hakubi shouted.

"Right," Tokine responded, running to the direction where the ayakashi had gone.

They reached at school's backyard. It seemed the ayakashi was hiding somewhere around here. Then, Tokine heard a rustle from a bush behind her. She quickly turned around and casted a kekkai around the bush. In her kekkai, there was a little girl wearing a cute dress. But, Tokine knew better than that. That girl was the ayakashi that they were looking for.

"Please spare me. I didn't mean to stay here. I just want to heal my injury," the girl sobbed, showing her wounded leg.

"Don't be fooled by her appearance, Honey. She's stronger than she looks. Destroy her now," Hakubi advised.

"I know," Tokine paused. "But, let's wait for Yoshimori. I want to do it in front of him."

"Are you sure, Honey?" Hakubi asked worriedly. "What if it gets out of control if you wait too long?"

"It'll be okay. I trapped the ayakashi inside my kekkai, right. There's no way it can escape. Besides, I want to see his face when I destroy it in front of him," Tokine said confidently.

Hakubi didn't like the idea. It's good to be confident with your skill but overconfident can get you killed. Something Hakubi didn't like and try to avoid as best as he can. But, before he could say anything, they heard footsteps running toward them.

"Tokine, did you destroy the ayakashi?" Yoshimori asked but looked puzzle at Tokine when he saw the ayakashi was **still** trapped inside her kekkai.

The first thing that entered Yoshimori's mind was 'Why on earth she didn't destroy the ayakashi?' It didn't make sense for Yoshimori. Tokine can easily metsu the ayakashi. But, here she was. Standing there and do nothing. Madarao told him that they were facing a strong ayakashi. Surely, Hakubi had told her about that. So, what she was waiting for?

"About time. See how I destroy this ayakashi," Tokine smirked, turning her back on ayakashi.

Yoshimori was confused before the word fully sank in his mind. "You mean you don't destroy it because you wait for me," Yoshimori asked dumbly.

"Yup, that's right," Tokine chirped.

Yoshimori didn't know how he should react to Tokine's stupidity. Should he yell and smack her head? She surely needed a wake up call. Maybe that'll teach her not to be stupid. However, before Yoshimori could respond to Tokine's remark, the ayakashi suddenly changed from a little girl into a large ayakashi with sharp claws.

"Tokine, watch out!" Yoshimori shouted.

Tokine turned around only to she fell on her butt. She was so shocked with the ayakashi's transformation that she froze on the spot. Something that was consider deadly in their profession. Tokine was too shocked and scared that she forgot to concentrate on her kekkai, making it easy for the ayakashi to break it.

"Foolish girl, you should destroy me when you have chance. But, thank for allowing me to absorb Karasumori's power," the ayakashi said, showing its large sharp teeth.

With that, the ayakashi raised his large claws at Tokine who froze on the ground. Tokine's eyes widened as the ayakashi brought down the claw. Blood splashed on the ground. But, it wasn't Tokine's blood. It was Yoshimori's blood. Tokine colud see clearly blood dripping from Yoshimori's right hand. The wound was deep. Ignoring the pain, Yoshimori quickly made a kekkai.

"Ketsu!" Yoshimori yelled. A large kekkai surrounded the ayakashi. The ayakashi yelled in rage. Before the ayakashi destroyed the kekkai, Yoshimori shouted, "Metsu!", killing the ayakashi. Then, he quickly used tenketsu to send away the dust of ayakashi into the otherworld. Tokine was still shaking in fear. But, Yoshimori's panting and wound snapped Tokine from her stupor.

"Yo – Yoshimori, are you okay?" Tokine asked.

Turning to Tokine, Yoshimori yelled, "Are you out of your mind? Why the hell did you let the ayakashi alive? You should destroy it when you have chance. To them, spending more time at Karasumori means more power. They'll kill, lie or do anything to buy time."

Tokine was speechless. She never saw Yoshimori so angry like this. Normally, she would argue back what Yoshimori said. But, she knew full well it was her fault. What made her more worried was Yoshimori was starting to pant heavily. He didn't look good.

"You should be ….pant…..grateful…. Next time, …..pant…you won't be …..pant….so lucky …like …today." As soon as Yoshimori said that, he collapsed on the ground.

"YOSHIMORI!" Tokine screamed.

**xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx **

For some reasons, Shuji suddenly had unsettling feeling. It was as if something bad is going to happen. He didn't know if this was some kind of bad omen or perhaps it was because he had a fight with his son. Shuji sighed and stared at his tea. He was still trying to sort out his feeling. What wrong did he have done? He just wanted to protect his sons from meeting the same fate as his wife. Was he wrong for doing such thing? He didn't understand. Why can't Yoshimori understand it? He was so deep in his thought that he didn't notice Shigemori at all.

"May I sit with you?" Shigemori asked, startling Shuji.

"Ah, yes," Shuji nodded quietly.

For a moment, silence reigned in the kitchen. The two adults didn't make any move to start a conversation. It was as if they were in deep thought.

"You know, you're too harsh on Yoshimori," Shigemori broke the silence.

Shuji flinched inwardly, "Well, I have to make my point clear."

"Shuji…"

"He's too young for this entire kekkaishi thing."

"I don't think…"

"What if he ends up like Sumiko?"

"Shuji..." Shigemori said slowly, "Yoshimori is **not** Sumiko."

Silence reigned again. Shuji didn't know what to say to his father in law. However, Shigemori just let it continued so that Shuji can absorb and digest what he had said. It was a short sentence but said everything that Shigemori wanted to say.

"But, Father, Yoshimori resembles Sumiko a lot," Shuji snapped and added slowly, "…..especially in personality. I just want… to protect him."

Shigemori frowned, "But, that doesn't mean…"

Before Shigemori could finished what he wanted to said, someone bang the door loudly and yelled on top of her lungs. There was a great urgency and panic in the yell.

"SOMEBODY, OPEN THE DOOR!"

Shigemori and Shuji looked at each other before bolting to the doorway. They had a bad feeling about this. Shuji was the first who reached the door. When he opened the door, he was horrified. There, in front of him, Yoshimori was carried on Tokine's back. There was blood on Yoshimori and Tokine's clothes. To be more precise, it was Yoshimori's blood. Shuji could see deep wound on Yoshimori's right hand. It'll definitely leave a scar. This really brought back unwanted memory on certain night.

The night of Sumiko's death.

Shuji's mind was too numb to think. He didn't notice how shocked Shigemori was. He didn't pay attention to Tokine's story. He didn't notice how Toshimori woke up and cried in the middle of commotion. Hell, he didn't even realize how he carried Yoshimori into their house. His mind only realized one thing.

Yoshimori was bleeding just like Sumiko.

He always feared that Yoshimori will end up like Sumiko. Now, the thing that he feared the most had become reality. At that point, sudden realization came to Shuji.

He had failed to protect Yoshimori.


	7. Chapter 7: An Overprotective Father

Disclaimer: I do not own Kekkaishi.

A/N. Okay, I just finished my final exam. Sorry if I took long time to update this story. Anyway, I appreciate any review you give to me. So, review.

Chapter 7: An Overprotective Father

Toshimori was peeping into Yoshimori's room from the door. He wanted to check Yoshimori, finding out if Yoshimori was okay or not. But, he didn't want to face his father who happened to be in the very same room, looking very distressed. Father was tending Yoshimori. Looking at his brother, Toshimori realized how paled Yoshimori was. But at least, it was better than yesterday. Yesterday was very scary. Yoshimori came back home wounded and bloody. For a moment, Toshimori thought he would lose Yoshimori too. This made Toshimori depressed.

He didn't want to lose another family member. He already lost his Mom and Masa-nii. He didn't want his family to hold another funeral. It's not even more than two months after Mom's death. After Sumiko's death and Masamori disappearance, Yoshimori had somewhat becoming a great support to Toshimori. He didn't know what to do if anything happened to Yoshimori. So, silently, Toshimori prayed that Yoshimori would not meet the same fate as their Mom. His thought was disrupted when Shuji called out him.

"You know, you can enter if you want to," Shuji said, motioning his youngest son to enter the room.

Toshimori cautiously entered the room. He hoped Father didn't mad at him for peeping into Yoshimori's room. Seeing Father wasn't mad at him, he sat besides Yoshimori. For a moment, silence reigned in the room. Both of them lost in their thought.

"Will Yoshi-nii be okay?" Toshimori broke the silence.

"I don't know," Shuji answered truthfully.

Biting his lips, Toshimori asked, "He's not going to die, right?"

"I don't know. We can only hope he'll be okay," Shuji said weakly, looking at his second son.

That's right; they can only hope he will be okay right now.

**xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

It's been three days since that incident. Tokine hadn't seen Yoshimori since that day. She had voiced her wished to visit Yoshimori many times to her Grandma and Mom. Unfortunately, they cannot allow her since the Sumimuras currently are not in the mood to welcome any visitors. But, they told her about Yoshimori's condition. He's fine but he was unconscious and had a high fever. Apparently, there was poison on the ayakashi's claw. Fortunately, the poison was not potent. Yoshimori will be okay after he had a lot of rest. It made Tokine felt relief knowing Yoshimori was okay but she still wanted to make sure Yoshimori was fine. She wanted to visit him.

This was the reason why she was currently standing in front of Yoshimori's house. She felt nervous and afraid at the same time. Even though they are neighbor, Tokine rarely went to Yoshimori's house. She only went there if her Mom asked her to. Of course the reason she didn't like to go there may have a little something to do with her pride. But, right now she needed to swallow her pride. It's her fault after all that Yoshimori got hurt badly. If she destroyed the ayakashi as soon as possible instead of showing off, none of this will happen. Yoshimori won't be lying on his futon with high fever right now.

She was also afraid. What if her visit was not welcomed especially by Yoshimori? Yoshimori was very mad at her at that time. What if he kicked her out from his house? Then, there was his family too. How will Yoshimori's family react to her? Will they be mad at her too? After all, she almost got Yoshimori killed just like his mother. Tokine shuddered at this thought. She almost got Yoshimori killed and she alrealy felt this guilty. What would happen if she really got Yoshimori killed? Will she be able to forgive herself? Will Yoshimori's family be able to forgive her?

She was so deep in her thought that she didn't realize the gate was opened, revealing Shigemori with a broom on his hand. For a moment, there was a silence between them. This made Tokine felt very awkward. She started to fidget under Shigemori's stare. She needed to figure out what to say to Yoshimori's grandpa as fast as possible. She didn't want him to think she was stalking Yoshimori. Well, even though she did try to infiltrate into Yoshimori's house several times which didn't end well, she didn't want to be accused of doing such thing.

"You know you should go home now. Yoshimori is still not well," Shigemori said slowly.

"Can I visit Yoshimori?" Tokine's heart raced in anticipation as she asked.

"Maybe when he gets better," Shigemori answered as he closed the gate.

Tokine stared at the gate in defeat. Tears started to form in her eyes. Despite her great effort, she can't stop it from falling. Soon, a sob can be heard. Shigemori heard it. He knew he may act harsh to the little girl by denying her request. Unfortunately, Shuji had made it clear that Yoshimori will not receive any visitors. He even shouted at him. Shigemori quietly made his way to Yoshimori's room. Yoshimori was lying on a futon, sweating and breathing heavily. His face was pale. Shuji was sitting beside Yoshmori. He was putting a wet towel on Yoshimori's forehead, hoping it will help Yoshimori's temperature to drop.

"How's Yoshimori?" Shigemori asked slowly.

"Not good but better than yesterday," Shuji replied. "I…."

Shuji wanted to say more but refrained himself from doing so. He didn't really know how to express his feeling. He didn't want to be seen as too emotional. It's a weakness. Something that should be avoided at all cost. Unfortunately, Shigemori noticed it.

"You know if you need someone to talk, I here," Shigemori placed his hand on Shuji's shoulder.

"No, I don't," Shuji said without taking his eyes off from Yoshimori.

"You know if you talk to someone, you'll feel better," Shigemori coaxed. "I do it too sometime."

Shuji contemplated for a moment, "I …..Yoshimori….."

Shuji struggled to find the right words. For some reason, the words eluded him. Shigemori didn't rush him, understanding it was not easy to discuss personal thing even with your own family. Silence reigned in the room.

"He… looked like her," Shuji said slowly.

"Who?"

"Yoshimori….he looked like her," Shuji took a deep breath. "Out of our three children, Yoshimori resembles Sumiko the most in personality. His stubbornness, his determination, everything is just like hers. I …..when Tokine-chan brought Yoshimori home that night…." Shuji bit his lips, "he looked just like Sumiko…..on the day she died. Bleeding badly, she can't even stand properly." Covering his face with his hand, he said with regret, "I should stop him from going to Karasumori. I should be stricter to him. I should….. I should protect him better."

Shigemori frowned, "Shuji, you can't blame yourself like that. You can't always be there to protect him. Besides, it was Yoshimori who decided to take up the patrolling duty. He won't listen to you no matter what you said."

"No! You don't understand!" Shuji shouted, turning abruptly to Shigemori which startling the old man.

"Shuji…" Shigemori tried to reason with his angry son in law.

"Sumiko died because of that cursed land. Like the hell I'm going to let Yoshimori die a meaningless, brutal death just like his Mom!" Shuji shouted, trying to contain his anger.

"It's not meaningless…" A weak voice said.

Shuji and Shigemori quickly focused their attention to the voice. It was Yoshimori. Despite of his weak body, he tried as hard as possible to sleep. Shuji quickly rushed to Yoshimori to check his condition. He put his hand on Yoshimori's forehead to check his temperature. It had started to drop to normal temperature. But still, Yoshimori's face looked very pale. Shuji decided it's better to be safe than sorry.

"Stay here. I'll grab some medicine and food for you," Shuji was about to walk away when a trembling, weak hand tugged his sleeves.

"No….it's ….not….meaningless," Yoshimori shook his head weakly.

Shuji as well as Shigemori were confused. They didn't understand what Yoshimori was trying to say. Could it be the fever had affected him in worse way? He's not having hallucination, right? They tried to make him let go of Shuji sleeves and rested on his futon. Unfortunately, it was unsuccessful.

Shuji tried to reason with Yoshimori, "You need to have some foods and medicine. You'll need to rest if you want to recover."

"Her death…..is not…meaningless," Yoshimori spoke.

"Yoshimori, what you're talking about?" Shuji asked.

"You said Mom's death is meaningless. It's not," Yoshimori breathed heavily.

Both adults just stared at each other. Oh, crap! Could it be Yoshimori had heard their conversation? How much he had been listening to? They didn't mean to let Yoshimori hear it.

"I never think Mom's death is meaningless. She died to protect Karasumori so no one will get hurt or die. That's definitely not a meaningless death. I – I refuse to believe such thing. And, I definitely won't let her death to be meaningless and let other people die like her," Yoshimori's eyes met Shuji's eyes, "So, whatever you say, I won't quit from this job."

"You'll get hurt and…." Shuji tried to protect but Yoshimori interrupted.

"I know you worry about me. But, you don't have to. I'll be fine. I'll be more careful and, and I'll train really, really hard to be good kekkaishi. I won't let the ayakashi eat or kill me. And…. and I'll come back home no matter what. Trust me," Yoshimori promised like other kids did when they tried to convince their parents to let them do something, usually unapproved thing.

With that, Yoshimori drifted back to his sleep. Shuji was speechless. That was the exactly how Sumiko convinced him to let her do her kekkaishi job. Deep in his heart, he knew he can't stop Yoshimori. If Yoshimori truly inherited Sumiko's stubbornness, once he had made a decision on something, he will do it no matter what other people around him say. So, Shuji knew he can't deter Yoshimori from taking over the family job. But, still that didn't mean he liked it. Shuji's was starting to have a headache.

He needed to think this thoroughly.

**xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx **

During the past four days, Yoshimori was starting to recover. He didn't have high fever anymore although his movements were still a bit sluggish. Although it was fun not going to school, Yoshimori can't deny how bored he was to be confined in the house. So, he decided to train or play outside with Toshimori to get rid this boring situation. It was a good idea but he didn't expect the reaction he got from his family. Shigemori clearly forbad him from training, going as far as locking their training dojo. As for Toshimori, he won't let him to go anywhere alone. He had becoming clingy to Yoshimori. Each time Yoshimori went somewhere even though to toilet, Toshimori will follow him.

Well, at least they were not worse than his father. Father didn't even let him do anything at all, claiming it will do more harm than good. Just like when he wanted to get a glass of water in kitchen or wanted to switch on the television. It's not like Yoshimori didn't appreciate his family's good attention. He knew they were only worried about him. It's just that it was too annoying. They treated him like he was a baby which didn't sit well for him. So, he decided to sit outside at the backyard to have a fresh air until he caught Tokine trying to sneak into his house for some unknown reason.

"Hey, Tokine, what are you doing?" Yoshimori called out, startling the little girl.

Tokine was surprised to see Yoshimori. But, she quickly looked away when her eyes fall on Yoshimori's bandaged right hand. She felt guilty. At first, Yoshimori was puzzled why Tokine acted like that until he saw guilty expression on Tokine's face.

"Don't worry. I'm fine. Look, it didn't hurt at all," Yoshimori waved his right hand to prove his point.

"I'm sorry," Tokine said guiltily. "I – I didn't mean to get you hurt." She then quickly added, "If you want anything, I can help you."

"It's okay. Everyone make a mistake. Just don't do it again," Yoshimori tried to cheer Tokine up.

Tokine just nodded dumbly while her eyes focused on Yoshimori's right hand. Yoshimori frowned. Sure, he wanted Tokine to take her duty seriously but he didn't want her to be sad like this just like everyone. Truthfully, Yoshimori didn't really understand why everyone made a great deal about his injury. He's still alive and not dead, right?

"Hey, do you like cake?" Yoshimori asked after a pause.

"Why?" Tokine asked.

"Great, you can help me to bake cake. I'm sure Toshimori would like a castle sized cake for his birthday," Yoshimori grinned.

Tokine just stared dumbly before she smiled, "Sure why not?"

**xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

Yoshimori was barely able to hide his happiness when Shigemori declared he was healthy enough to go to school and resume his kekkaishi duty. Of course, Shigemori warned him not to push himself too much and any other lengthy advices. Toshimori, on the other hand, wasn't sure. He begged Yoshimori not to go to Karasumori. When it didn't work, he asked Yoshimori to bring him together so he could help Yoshimori. Of course, Yoshimori didn't allow it because Toshimori was too young and didn't know how to use kekkai technique.

"Come on, I can look after myself. I won't get hurt again. Promise," Yoshimori shouted.

"But….." Toshimori's voice trailed off.

"I'll be fine. Don't worry," Yoshimori reassured his family.

"So, you're still not going to give up protecting Karasumori," Shuji said quietly.

"Yeah," Yoshimori said bravely, expecting this will lead to a great fight.

"Okay….." Shuji said.

With that, Shuji retreated to his room. Yoshimori just stared his father's spot dumbly. What the heck just happened? His father just leaved him without starting a fight. It made him felt uneasy. Could it be that Father had changed his mind? But, naahh….that's impossible.

Right?

Later, at night, Yoshimori got ready to go to Karasumori. Shigemori and Toshimori were sending him off at the doorway. They still worried about him. Toshimori looked as if he wanted to cry on the spot.

Ruffling Toshimori's hair, Yoshimori said, "Don't worry, I come back in one piece."

Toshimori just nodded slowly. Yoshimori put on his shoes and reached out for his tenketsu only to be handed to him by his father. Yoshimori blinked for a moment. Shuji then gave him something unexpected, a bento box and a first aid kit. Yoshimori just stared, trying to process what had happened.

"Try not to get hurt and be careful," Shuji just smiled weakly.

Yoshimori knew the meaning of his father's smile. It meant 'I don't like you get involve with Karasumori, but if that what you decide to do, I'll support you.' It made Yoshimori's heart warm, knowing he had his father's support.

Smiling, Yoshimori said before darting off to Karasumori, "I will."


End file.
